Green Bay, Wisconsin — Even though it is only one practice, the veteran has an advantage over the other two players in the Packers’ two-man kicking battle thanks to his 7-for-7 day and Anderson Carlson’s 4-for-7 session on Thursday. In terms of kicks tried in front of reporters, Joseph is currently 29 out of 31 in training camp, while Carlson is 25 out of 31.
The Packers currently have two options after releasing Michigan’s James Turner, an undrafted rookie kicker, this week. The Packers’ final 12 games of the season saw nine missed kicks by 2023 sixth-round pick Carlson, who had no opposition in preseason or during the regular season. Among those missed kicks was a 41-yarder in the fourth quarter of a three-point loss to the 49ers in the Divisional Round.
In the previous season’s regular season and playoffs, Carlson made 29 of 36 field goals and 41 of 47 extra points. Joseph, who turns 30 on Sunday, has a career field goal percentage of 82.9 percent (102/123, including 2-of-2 in the playoffs), and he has a career extra point percentage of 90.8 percent with 158 of 174 kicks. Joseph joined the league in 2018 and spent the last three seasons kicking for the Browns, Titans, and Vikings before joining the Packers.
Will he remain in Green Bay after training camp ends? It might if he continues on his current trajectory. On Thursday, Joseph made kicks from 41, 42, 45, 47, 49, and 51 yards, as well as 58 yards to end practice. After three workouts, he has now made 14 straight kicks. He will try to continue this run for Family Night at Lambeau Field on Saturday. While Joseph insists he does not pay heed to any of those numbers—possibly not even the yardages from where he kicks—he did say that being in this groove “feels wonderful.”
“I don’t look at stats,” Joseph said. “I don’t look at yesterday. I’m not looking at tomorrow. Look at today and literally seeing my foot through each and every ball one at a time like singularly and that’s it … I don’t look at it as 7-for-7. It’s 1-for-1 times seven in my head, so keeping that mindset and then obviously trying to stay in that groove and then taking that mindset to preseason.”
Greg Joseph was the kicker on Keisean Nixon’s 105-yard house call against the Vikings in 2022.
Joseph today: “I had the chance to make a tackle. I tried. He stiff-armed me, but now it’s all in good fun because now we’re on the same team. So like the first day we were here, we… pic.twitter.com/zH6IFWIMKW
— Matt Schneidman (@mattschneidman) August 1, 2024
Joseph didn’t even know his last kick of practice was from 58 yards.
“Didn’t even know we were that far back, to be honest, and I’m not trying to sound any type of way,” he said. “My mindset is just locked in that wherever they put the ball down, I get my line, I get my aiming point and I put my foot through the ball the same as if it was a PAT or the same as if it was a 65-yarder.”
In the upcoming weeks, seasoned special teams coordinator Rich Bisaccia will have to make a decision. Here are a few things to think about:
1) Even if Joseph outkicks Carlson in camp, Carlson’s unrealized potential as a second-year kicker compared to Joseph’s as a seventh-year veteran may play a role in the selection.
2) It is not as easy as Joseph having a four-kick advantage since there is more to a kicking contest than just the field goals these guys try during open sessions.
3) After a difficult beginning to his career with the Vikings in 2018, Bisaccia assisted Carlson’s older brother, Daniel, in becoming an All-Pro kicker with the Raiders. There is a chance Bisaccia’s conviction that he can accomplish the same with the younger brother will influence the Packers’ choice.
“There’s competitive position battles going on throughout the team and we’re going to have constant conversation about it,” Bisaccia said, “and we’ll sit down collectively and make a decision when the time comes.”
Six other items to note during Thursday’s training camp’s ninth practice are as follows:
1. Reversing course Josh Jacobs stated following practice that he was sidelined due to a groin ailment. “Nothing serious. Just some little tweak. If we were playing today, I’d be playing. It’s nothing like that. I could’ve even practiced today, but it’s more so trying to protect me from doing anything and making it worse. It’s Aug. 1, so we’ve got time to figure it out.” Linebacker Edgerrin Cooper missed practice with a hip injury and cornerback Don Callis with a hamstring injury. Center Josh Myers was absent while dealing with a personal matter, while defensive ends Rashan Gary and Preston Smith, defensive tackle Kenny Clark and left guard Elgton Jenkins got vet rest days.
2. Third-round rookie running back Adam Stenavich, the offensive coordinator, stated this summer that the Packers needed to get MarShawn Lloyd on the field, and he showed why on Thursday. The audience erupted in applause as he took a run against the starters up the middle, cut left, and darted along the sideline for what would have likely been a lengthy run and possibly even a touchdown of roughly 50 yards. He also caught a somewhat high pass over the middle from Sean Clifford, demonstrating a pass-catching talent that the Packers obviously desire. Since the offseason program, Lloyd’s burst and shiftiness have been apparent, and his entire skill set could be sufficient to oust AJ Dillon as Jacobs’ primary backup.
“I want to have that playmaker mentality, being able to make defenders miss,” Lloyd said. “When I’m going, I’m going. That’s something I really want to showcase a lot. Just being able to be out there and put it into fruition and just allow myself to put that on film was pretty cool.”
3. Jordan Love, the quarterback, had two spectacular throws as the offense and he continue to click. First, with linebacker Quay Walker in close coverage, Love connected receiver Christian Watson down the seam for approximately thirty yards. The pass was similar to the one Aaron Rodgers made to tight end Robert Tonyan for a touchdown against the Lions in 2021. Rodgers trailed Tonyan down the seam and neatly placed the ball in linebacker Alex Anzalone’s blind spot. During the two-minute drill, Love then found wide receiver Dontayvion Wicks for a gain of roughly 26 yards with a wonderfully lofted ball to Wicks’ far shoulder along the left sideline, cornerback Eric Stokes in strong coverage. Wicks caught the ball and landed on both feet before
“Him putting his trust in me to go up and go get it,” Wicks said. “I knew it was close to the sideline, so I was just trying to get my feet in and attack the ball … getting on the same page with the quarterback, that’s the best thing and just gaining his trust for him to want to throw the ball at all to (me).”
4. Defensive end Lukas Van Ness, defensive end Kingsley Enagbare, and linebacker Isaiah McDuffie are three players that contributed in limited capacity during the previous season but may see increased playing time in 2024. Thursday was another one of their great weeks as Enagbare met Dillon behind the line of scrimmage on a run and nearly immediately after grabbed the ball, blew up a jet sweep to wide receiver Jayden Reed. Together, McDuffie and Van Ness appeared on two plays; first, they stopped a Lloyd run, and then, in the last practice session, they put pressure on Love (Van Ness, who had defeated backup left guard Royce Newman).
5. Gary got his cardio in while wearing a bucket hat and watching practice. He was on a vet rest day. Gary high-stepped approximately 25 yards downfield in celebration after defensive end Kenneth Odumegwu got low and easily maneuvered by left tackle Kadeem Telfort around the outside for what would have been a sack of fourth-string quarterback Jacob Eason. Due to Green Bay’s IPP roster exemption, Odumegwu, who joined the organization during the previous offseason as a member of the International Player Pathway Program, is eligible to play for the entire season. The 23-year-old Nigerian is still relatively new to the game and did not understand basic football vocabulary the previous season, but on Thursday he practiced with the second team defense and is well-liked by his fellow defensive teammates.
“Kenneth’s got a cool, unique story,” Gary said. “Every time I see him take strides and leaps, it’s amazing to see. He’s going in his second year playing in the NFL. He skipped high school, he skipped middle school, college. He’s at the top level he can be, so him out there making plays and us celebrating him, that just shows him doing his thing.”
6. Wicks was the outstanding wide receiver on Thursday. In addition to hauling in the play of the day, he also made a few more clutch receptions. Wicks’ previous two-point conversion and touchdown during the starters’ two-minute drill on Wednesday were both achieved on the same day. Wicks, nevertheless, also provided sound effects for a play he did not write. Love hit Wicks on a fast out close to the goal line with four seconds left in the starters’ two-minute drill, with the offense needing a score and an extra point to tie. Wicks attempted to enter through the front-left pylon, but was stopped by CB Jaire Alexander, who used his shoulder to knock Wicks to the ground. Following Alexander’s insulting remarks, Wicks stood up.
After some chippy play, LaFleur makes the offense and defense handshake it out after practice. More push-ups for the offense, which Preston Smith is loving counting out. pic.twitter.com/rJzxH6moUk
— Matt Schneidman (@mattschneidman) August 1, 2024
“It wasn’t live, so I wasn’t expecting that,” Wicks said. “But it is what it is.”
This was a pretty mild scuffle for a training camp. If the Packers’ two practices with the Bengals and Patriots last year are any sign of what is to come, expect considerably more heated ones later this month when they practice against the Broncos and Ravens.
Unrelated to practice, the Packers’ Week 7 game versus the Texans at Lambeau Field at 12:00 CT will feature white helmets matched with white jerseys and white pants, for those who enjoy new uniform combinations. In keeping with the game’s “winter warning” theme, the team is requesting that spectators wear white.
Introducing our white helmet.
In real life. @amfam pic.twitter.com/TcHEtDMOf4
— Green Bay Packers (@packers) August 1, 2024
“It’s clean. Clean,” Jacobs said of the new look. “You can’t really see the details in the helmet from afar, but up close, it’s got little gold flecks and stuff in it. It’s definitely dope.”
(Top photo of Greg Joseph: Mike Roemer / Associated Press)
